Commemorated: | |||
Awards & Titles: | Distinguished Service Order Military Cross & 2 Bar | ||
Early Life :
Walter George Bailey, known as "Joe" was born at Thame in 1890.He was an English Professional Footballer who played circa 180 games for the Southern League for Reading, but also for Nottingham Forest amongst others.
See also: Joe_Bailey_(English_footballer) - Wikipedia
His signed portrait photo can be found in multiple sources, including the reference above. Credit to Mssr. Collier of Reading.
Service Life:
Campaigns:
- The First World War 1914-1918, World-wide.
- The Second World War 1939-1945, World-wide.
| Unit / Ship / Est.: The Suffolk Regiment |
| Action : War Survivor |
Although many perished in times of national conflict and in the service of their country, many more survived including those interned as Prisoners of War. Stories of those who did survive are included as part of this site, especially those with high gallantry awards, those included against an external rolls of honour and those who had a distinguished career in wartime and military leaderhip.
Detail :
"In December 1914, four months after the outbreak of the First World War, Bailey enlisted as a lance corporal in the Football Battalion of the Middlesex Regiment. The battalion arrived on the Western Front in November 1915 and he was lightly wounded in the face by a rifle grenade in trenches near Calonne-sur-la-Lys in February 1916. In June 1916, Bailey was evacuated back to Britain after a hand, which he had cut on barbed wire, turned septic."
Suffolk Regiment - Facebook "Walter George Bailey, known as ‘Joe’ and nicknamed ‘Bubbles’, enlisted into the Footballers Battalion of the Middlesex Regiment in 1914. After recovering from an injury in 1916, Joe was commissioned into the Norfolk Regiment in August 1917 and returned to the Western Front. Joe was serving as a temporary Second Lieutenant, attached to the Suffolk Regiment, when he was awarded the Military Cross for his actions on 28 March 1918. Joe was awarded a bar to his Military Cross for his actions on 21 August 1918, and again on 8 October 1918. However, it wasn’t until 3 October 1919 that he would receive the Distinguished Service Order for his actions on 23 October 1918. Lt Joe ‘Bubbles’ Bailey of 2/Suffolk made it to the Armistice as the most decorated Suffolk Regiment Officer of the war with a DSO and MC with two Bars."
Citations & Commemorations :
Bailey was serving as a temporary second lieutenant, attached to the Suffolk Regiment, when he was awarded the Military Cross for his actions on 28 March 1918: "For conspicuous gallantry and devotion to duty. When the line had to be reformed under heavy machine-gun fire, this officer moved about, placing the men in the best positions. He then made several journeys to an ammunition dump in front of the line, bringing back ammunition which was much needed. He also brought back a man who was lying wounded in the open."Bailey was awarded a bar to his Military Cross for his actions on 21 August 1918: "For conspicuous gallantry during an advance. Accompanied by one orderly he rushed a machine-gun post which was holding up the advance of the battalion, and captured 1 officer, 23 men, and 2 machine guns. Later in the day he made a reconnaissance under very heavy fire, and brought back information as to the position of the battalion. Two days later, accompanied by his orderly and two other men, he went forward and attacked two enemy machine guns, scattering the crews and killing several. His utter disregard of danger was magnificent."
He was awarded a second bar to his Military Cross for his actions on 8 October 1918: "For conspicuous gallantry and devotion to duty at Seranvillers on October 8th, 1918. He assembled the troops, and afterwards with a few scouts moved forward with the attack, He cleared the village and, with four men, captured prisoners and machine guns. He reorganised men of the battalion who had lost their companies and then went out and ascertained the enemy's dispositions under very heavy machine-gun and shell fire. Greatly owing to his gallant and determined leadership all objectives were gained."
On 3 October 1919, Bailey received the Distinguished Service Order for his actions on 23 October 1918: "For conspicuous gallantry and able leadership as Battalion Intelligence Officer at Romeries, Escarmain and Beaudignies on 23 October 1918. He went forward and found that a company had become disorganised owing to the loss of all its officers, and was hesitating to go forward. He immediately took command, rallied the men, and succeeded in getting them to their objective under heavy shell fire. Later, he led them in the assault on the final objective. He showed great skill in consolidating the positions gained and in the disposal of his force."
Masonic :
| Type | Lodge Name and No. | Province/District : |
|---|---|---|
| Mother : | Saint Mary's No. 1763 E.C. | Oxfordshire |
Initiated | Passed | Raised |
24th March 1921 | 19th May 1921 | 20th October 1921 |
Source :
The project globally acknowledges the following as sources of information for research across the whole database:
- The Commonwealth War Graves Commission
- The (UK) National Archives
- Ancestry.co.uk - Genealogy, Family Trees & Family History online
- ugle.org.uk - The records of the United Grand Lodge of England including the Library and Museum of Freemasonry
Additional Source:
- Founder Researchers : Paul Masters & Mike McCarthy
- Researcher : Bruce Littley